1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to telecommunications and, more particularly, to methods and systems for managing call authorizations for a mobile station that operates in accordance with a prepaid wireless service plan.
2. Description of Related Art
Many wireless service providers offer prepaid wireless service plans in which a customer pays a certain amount in advance to fund a prepaid balance. The prepaid balance is then decremented in accordance with the customer's wireless usage. In many cases, the prepaid balance is monitored and decremented in real time, i.e., at the same time the customer uses wireless services. That way, when the customer's prepaid balance falls to zero or to some other low value while the customer is involved a call, the wireless network may interrupt the call to warn the customer of the low balance or may disconnect the call.
Such real-time control over the provisioning of prepaid wireless service often requires timely communication between various elements of the wireless network. For example, a prepaid service platform, such as a service control point (SCP), may communicate with a mobile switching center (MSC) to control the prepaid wireless services that are provided to mobile stations operating in the MSC's service area. However, when such communications fail, e.g., due to network outages, or are delayed, the wireless network may not be able to adequately limit a customer's wireless usage based on the customer's prepaid balance. As a result, a customer might still be able to use wireless service, e.g., to make or receive chargeable calls, even after the customer's prepaid balance is depleted.
Accordingly, there is a need for additional methods and systems for controlling a prepaid customer's usage of wireless service.